Converting To A 65 Gallon Tank! A Few Questions!

[thorn1414]

Right now I have a 10g freshwater tank with only one goldfish in it since the rest of my fish died from the hurricane sandy power outage. The goldfish has become too large for the 10gal, so I have purchased a 65 gallon tank that will continue to be a freshwater tank. I bought a 50lb bag of PFS from a local pool store, so that will be used as the substrate for this tank,  I still have all of the chemicals+test kits from my 10gal, so that should be the same. All that I think i need to buy is more fish, new decor+driftwood, a power filter, a heater, and an air pump.

For the power filter, I read that it is better to have two of each. I am planning on getting one filter: debating between the 350gph marineland penguin and the 70 gallon fluval aquaclear, please let me know which I should get and why ($10 price difference on the filter itself.)
 
I am planning on getting two ViaAqua 200w heaters and put each on opposite ends of the tank- my tank is 49in long. Is two 200w heaters too much for this 65gal or should i be fine?
 
What is the purpose of the air pump and do i really need one for my tank or will i be fine without one? 
 
Any advice on decorating the tank on a low budget? $50-$75 budget for all decorations
 
If i have more questions they will be in the comments. Thanks!

 

[attibones]

I use two heaters in my 55. One is much older than the other, so the new one is powerful enough to heat the whole tank, should my original one fail. If you do this, you'll need two floating thermometers (very accurate), one on each side, to be dire that you aren't over heating the water. Make sure you have your heaters at an angle as this prevents hot/cool spots.

It's always best to over filter, especially with goldfish. The Penguin 350 would work for most tropical set ups. However, goldfish are really messy, so you ought to look for something with a higher gph turnover. Ideally you'll want something 10 times your tank volume. The 350 is only about 5 times your volume. Check the Fluval. See what its turnover rate is. I have two filters on my tank, plus an air stone/pump. The pump is just for added flow, but I find it also helps with gaseous exchange. Both of my filters are on the right side of the tank, but my pump runs to an airstone on the left side. This allows bith halves to have water movement, but one half is calmer for shy fish or fish who are trying to breed. The other half is suitable for the everyday fish. If you want more flow to your water, you could also consider a power head.

For low budget decorating, I'd say make as much as you can. To to your local flower store and buy a bunch of their cheap clay pots. Boil those for thirty minutes, place them in your tank. Beg your friends for used decorations. See if you can't find anything on sale online. To to your local home improvement store and buy slate slabs. They run about 1.50-2.50 a piece and make excellent cave structures. PVC piping can make excellent caves too. Avoid the LFS for decor. My LFS sells sand for 2.00 a pound, but at the home improvement store I got it for ten cents a pound. If you shop there for decor building supplies, you'll save tons of money, but you will also get products which look exactly as you want them too.

 

[thorn1414]

Some great advice, thanks! I think i will be going with two marineland penguin 350 filters since I have a very limited budget. I will still go with the two 200w heaters. I guess I won't need an air pump now but will consider getting one in the near future to help with a decoration.

 

[attibones]

Two of the 350s should be perfect for your set up. If you are looking for driftwood, walk down a local river and see if you can't find anything pretty. Then boil it for a bit (you want to make sure it is clean), and then soak for a few days. The boiling may cause the driftwood to rot a bit more quickly than if you didn't boil it, but it also helps to ensure that there is nothing on the wood that ought not be.

 

[thorn1414]

I decided fork out a little extra to get two AquaClear 70's instead of the marineland 350s. I don't have any rivers around me because I live on Long Island, but i'm close to beaches, any suggestions?